Ashes and Embers is a 1982

1982 in film

-Events:* March 26 = I Ought to Be in Pictures, starring Walter Matthau, Ann-Margret and Dinah Manoff is released. Manoff would not appear in another movie until 1987's Backfire.* June = PG-rated film E.T...

 drama

Drama

Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...

 film directed by Haile Gerima

Haile Gerima

Haile Gerima is an Ethiopian filmmaker, who resides in the United States. He is a leading member of the L.A. Rebellion film movement, also known as the Los Angeles School of Black Filmmakers. His films have received wide international acclaim. Gerima has also been an influential film professor at...

.

Plot summary

Ashes and Embers is a two-hour film about the travail

Travail

Travail was a Christian nu metal / rapcore band based in the Dallas/Fort Worth area in Texas. Fronted by Matt Leslie, it had an intense following at Club 412, a local church-sponsored lounge and music venue located in southwest Fort Worth. Stylistic comparisons were often drawn between their sound...

s of black

Black people

The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a...

 urban life. It is the story of a moody and disillusioned black veteran

Veteran

A veteran is a person who has had long service or experience in a particular occupation or field; " A veteran of ..."...

 of the Vietnam War

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

.

Cast

• John Anderson ... Ned Charles
• Evelyn A. Blackwell ... Grandma
• Norman Blalock ... Jim
• Kathy Flewellen ... Liza Jane
• Uwezo Flewellen ... Kimathi
• Barry Wiggins ... Randolph

Fellow filmmakers Billy Woodberry

Billy Woodberry

Billy Woodberry is one of the leading directors of the L.A. Rebellion . He is best known for directing the 1984 feature film, Bless Their Little Hearts , which was honored at the Berlin International Film Festival.-Background:Woodberry was born in Dallas, Texas...

 and Bernard Nicolas make brief cameo appearances in the film.

Awards and honors

In 1983, director Haile Gerima won the FIPRESCI Prize for Forum of New Cinema

Film

A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...

, at the Berlin International Film Festival

Berlin International Film Festival

The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...

, for Ashes and Embers.